Good for the goose and the gander

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It's puzzling why using marijuana, even in private, is a prison-worthy offense, whereas alcohol, which is addictive and a source of enormous social damage and highway carnage, is available at"grocery stores, restaurants, major sporting events, street fairs and on airplane flights. Common sense suggests that"we should outlaw all recreational drugs including marijuana, alcohol and nicotine or make them equally available and taxable, and subject to identical regulation.

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Joe Leonard

Whitewater, Wis.

Researcher

Explain the rationale for making alcohol legal and marijuana illegal. I see no good reason for the difference. Both are recreational drugs. I don't use grass, but I have no problem with other people doing it.

How would things change if grass were decriminalized? Law enforcement could devote more resources to true crime. Recreational grassuse doesn't hurt societyany more than recreational beer drinking.

Do you know anybody who smokes grass? Quite a few.

Describe the argument against decriminalization. Marijuana is a gateway to harder drugs. But you could say the same about beer.

What changes in the current laws would you support? People should be able to grow their own, and they shouldn't go to jail for possession of small amounts.

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Mark Masters

Rockrimmon

Marketing consultant

Explainthe difference between using alcohol and using marijuana. One is legal, the other isn't. It's that simple. Both inhibit normal functioning.

Do you favor decriminalization? Not for recreational use, because it might lead to experimentation with other substances.

Does drinking beer lead to experimentation with harder alcohol? Very possibly.

Describe the argument against decriminalization. We're not very good at managing our behavior, and if we allow medicinal use, we open new channels for using marijuana.

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Linda Devocelle

East of downtown

Professional writer

Why is alcohol OK to use recreationally, but not marijuana? I couldn't tell you. Both are drugs that alter how you think and act.

Describe the argument against decriminalization. Marijuana leads to use of harmful drugs. Making it illegal keeps people from using it.

What would change if marijuana were decriminalized? Access would be easier, and more people might try it to see what it's like, but I think overall usage would remain pretty much what it is at present, where people use it despite the laws against it.

Do you support decriminalization? We should legalize all drugs, because laws don't stop their usage any more than Prohibition stopped alcohol usage.

How commonplace is marijuana use? It's so widespread that use in small quantities tends to be overlooked by the police.